The Pulitzer Prize for Poetry is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes awarded annually for Letters, Drama, and Music. It was first presented in 1922, and is given for a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author, published during the preceding calendar year.
Finalists have been announced since 1980, ordinarily two others beside the winner.
Before the establishment of the award, the 1918 and 1919 Pulitzer cycles included three Pulitzer Prize Special Citations and Awards (called at the time the Columbia University Poetry Prize) for poetry books funded by "a special grant from The Poetry Society." See Special Pulitzers for Letters.
Winners
In its first 92 years to 2013, the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry was awarded 92 times. Two were given in 2008, none in 1946. Robert Frost won the prize four times and several others won it more than once (below).
Pulitzer Special Prizes for Poetry, 1918 and 1919
Year |
Poet |
Title |
1918 |
Teasdale, SaraSara Teasdale |
Love Songs |
1919 |
Sandburg, CarlCarl Sandburg |
Cornhuskers |
1919 |
Widdemer, MargaretMargaret Widdemer |
The Old Road to Paradise |
1920s–1970s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 1922–1979
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Ref. |
1922 |
Robinson, Edwin ArlingtonEdwin Arlington Robinson |
Collected Poems |
|
1923 |
St. Vincent Millay, EdnaEdna St. Vincent Millay |
"Ballad of the Harp-Weaver The Ballad of the Harp-Weaver," "A Few Figs from Thistles," and "Eight Sonnets" |
|
1924 |
Frost, RobertRobert Frost |
New Hampshire: A Poem with Notes and Grace Notes |
|
1925 |
Robinson, Edwin ArlingtonEdwin Arlington Robinson |
Man Who Died Twice The Man Who Died Twice |
|
1926 |
Lowell, AmyAmy Lowell |
What's O'Clock |
|
1927 |
Speyer, LeonoraLeonora Speyer |
Fiddler's Farewell |
|
1928 |
Robinson, Edwin ArlingtonEdwin Arlington Robinson |
Tristram |
|
1929 |
Benét, Stephen VincentStephen Vincent Benét |
John Brown's Body |
|
1930 |
Aiken, ConradConrad Aiken |
Selected Poems |
|
1931 |
Frost, RobertRobert Frost |
Collected Poems |
|
1932 |
Dillon, GeorgeGeorge Dillon |
Flowering Stone The Flowering Stone |
|
1933 |
MacLeish, ArchibaldArchibald MacLeish |
Conquistador |
|
1934 |
Hillyer, RobertRobert Hillyer |
Collected Verse |
|
1935 |
Wurdemann, AudreyAudrey Wurdemann |
Bright Ambush |
|
1936 |
Coffin, Robert P. T.Robert P. T. Coffin |
Strange Holiness |
|
1937 |
Frost, RobertRobert Frost |
Further Range A Further Range |
|
1938 |
Zaturenska, MaryaMarya Zaturenska |
Cold Morning Sky |
|
1939 |
Fletcher, John GouldJohn Gould Fletcher |
Selected Poems |
|
1940 |
Van Doren, MarkMark Van Doren |
Collected Poems |
|
1941 |
Bacon, LeonardLeonard Bacon |
Sunderland Capture |
|
1942 |
Benét, William RoseWilliam Rose Benét |
Dust Which Is God The Dust Which Is God |
|
1943 |
Frost, RobertRobert Frost |
Witness Tree A Witness Tree |
|
1944 |
Benét, Stephen VincentStephen Vincent Benét |
Western Star |
|
1945 |
Shapiro, KarlKarl Shapiro |
V-Letter and Other Poems |
|
1946 |
No award given |
|
1947 |
Lowell, RobertRobert Lowell |
Lord Weary's Castle |
|
1948 |
Auden, W. H.W. H. Auden |
Age of Anxiety The Age of Anxiety |
|
1949 |
Viereck, PeterPeter Viereck |
Terror and Decorum |
|
1950 |
Brooks, GwendolynGwendolyn Brooks |
Annie Allen |
|
1951 |
Sandburg, CarlCarl Sandburg |
Complete Poems |
|
1952 |
Moore, MarianneMarianne Moore |
Collected Poems |
|
1953 |
MacLeish, ArchibaldArchibald MacLeish |
Collected Poems 1917-1952 |
|
1954 |
Roethke, TheodoreTheodore Roethke |
Waking The Waking |
|
1955 |
Stevens, WallaceWallace Stevens |
Collected Poems |
|
1956 |
Bishop, ElizabethElizabeth Bishop |
Poems: North & South — A Cold Spring |
|
1957 |
Wilbur, RichardRichard Wilbur |
Things of This World |
|
1958 |
Warren, Robert PennRobert Penn Warren |
Promises: Poems 1954-1956 |
|
1959 |
Kunitz, StanleyStanley Kunitz |
Selected Poems 1928-1958 |
|
1960 |
Snodgrass, W. D.W. D. Snodgrass |
Heart's Needle |
|
1961 |
McGinley, PhyllisPhyllis McGinley |
Times Three: Selected Verse From Three Decades |
|
1962 |
Dugan, AlanAlan Dugan |
Poems |
|
1963 |
Williams, William CarlosWilliam Carlos Williams |
Pictures from Brueghel |
|
1964 |
Simpson, LouisLouis Simpson |
At the End of the Open Road |
|
1965 |
Berryman, JohnJohn Berryman |
77 Dream Songs |
|
1966 |
Eberhart, RichardRichard Eberhart |
Selected Poems |
|
1967 |
Sexton, AnneAnne Sexton |
Live or Die |
|
1968 |
Hecht, AnthonyAnthony Hecht |
Hard Hours The Hard Hours |
|
1969 |
Oppen, GeorgeGeorge Oppen |
Of Being Numerous |
|
1970 |
Howard, RichardRichard Howard |
Untitled Subjects |
|
1971 |
Merwin, W. S.W. S. Merwin |
Carrier of Ladders The Carrier of Ladders |
|
1972 |
Wright, JamesJames Wright |
Collected Poems |
|
1973 |
Kumin, MaxineMaxine Kumin |
Up Country |
|
1974 |
Lowell, RobertRobert Lowell |
Dolphin The Dolphin |
|
1975 |
Snyder, GaryGary Snyder |
Turtle Island |
|
1976 |
Ashbery, JohnJohn Ashbery |
Self-portrait in a Convex Mirror |
|
1977 |
Merrill, JamesJames Merrill |
Divine Comedies |
|
1978 |
Nemerov, HowardHoward Nemerov |
Collected Poems |
|
1979 |
Warren, Robert PennRobert Penn Warren |
Now and Then |
|
1980s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 1980–1989
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Result |
Ref. |
1980 |
Justice, DonaldDonald Justice |
Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Hugo, RichardRichard Hugo |
Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Smith, DaveDave Smith |
Goshawk, Antelope |
Finalist |
|
1981 |
Schuyler, JamesJames Schuyler |
Morning of the Poem The Morning of the Poem |
Winner |
|
Hugo, RichardRichard Hugo |
Right Madness on Skye The Right Madness on Skye |
Finalist |
|
Strand, MarkMark Strand |
Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
1982 |
Plath, SylviaSylvia Plath |
Collected Poems The Collected Poems |
Winner |
|
Smith, DaveDave Smith |
Dream Flights |
Finalist |
|
Wright, CharlesCharles Wright |
Southern Cross The Southern Cross |
Finalist |
|
1983 |
Kinnell, GalwayGalway Kinnell |
Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Gilbert, JackJack Gilbert |
Monolithos, Poems 1962 and 1982 |
Finalist |
|
Wright, CharlesCharles Wright |
Country Music, Selected Early Poems |
Finalist |
|
1984 |
Oliver, MaryMary Oliver |
American Primitive |
Winner |
|
Engels, JohnJohn Engels |
Weather-Fear: New and Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Miles, JosephineJosephine Miles |
Collected Poems, 1930-1982 |
Finalist |
|
1985 |
Kizer, CarolynCarolyn Kizer |
Yin |
Winner |
|
Duncan, RobertRobert Duncan |
Ground Work |
Finalist |
|
Wright, CharlesCharles Wright |
Other Side of the River The Other Side of the River |
Finalist |
|
1986 |
Taylor, Henry S.Henry S. Taylor |
Flying Change The Flying Change |
Winner |
|
Hudgins, AndrewAndrew Hudgins |
Saints and Strangers |
Finalist |
|
Simic, CharlesCharles Simic |
Selected Poems, 1963-1983 |
Finalist |
|
1987 |
Dove, RitaRita Dove |
Thomas and Beulah |
Winner |
|
Carruth, HaydenHayden Carruth |
Selected Poetry of Hayden Carruth The Selected Poetry of Hayden Carruth |
Finalist |
|
Simic, CharlesCharles Simic |
Unending Blues |
Finalist |
|
1988 |
Meredith, WilliamWilliam Meredith |
Partial Accounts: New and Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Clifton, LucilleLucille Clifton |
Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir 1969-1980 and Next: New Poems |
Finalist |
|
Williams, C.K.C.K. Williams |
Flesh and Blood |
Finalist |
|
1989 |
Wilbur, RichardRichard Wilbur |
New and Collected Poems |
Winner |
|
Hall, DonaldDonald Hall |
One Day The One Day |
Finalist |
|
Hongo, GarrettGarrett Hongo |
River of Heaven The River of Heaven |
Finalist |
|
1990s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 1990–1999
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Result |
Ref. |
1990 |
Simic, CharlesCharles Simic |
World Doesn't End The World Doesn't End |
Winner |
|
Rich, AdrienneAdrienne Rich |
Time's Power |
Finalist |
|
Zweig, PaulPaul Zweig |
Selected and Last Poems |
Finalist |
|
1991 |
Van Duyn, MonaMona Van Duyn |
Near Changes |
Winner |
|
Hecht, AnthonyAnthony Hecht |
Transparent Man The Transparent Man |
Finalist |
|
Stern, GeraldGerald Stern |
Leaving Another Kingdom |
Finalist |
|
1992 |
Tate, JamesJames Tate |
Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Creeley, RobertRobert Creeley |
Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Rich, AdrienneAdrienne Rich |
Atlas of the Difficult World An Atlas of the Difficult World |
Finalist |
|
1993 |
Glück, LouiseLouise Glück |
Wild Iris The Wild Iris |
Winner |
|
Ashbery, JohnJohn Ashbery |
Hotel Lautreamont |
Finalist |
|
Merrill, JamesJames Merrill |
Selected Poems 1946-1985 |
Finalist |
|
1994 |
Komunyakaa, YusefYusef Komunyakaa |
Neon Vernacular: New and Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Hillman, BrendaBrenda Hillman |
Bright Existence |
Finalist |
|
Mandelbaum, AllenAllen Mandelbaum |
Metamorphoses of Ovid The Metamorphoses of Ovid |
Finalist |
|
1995 |
Levine, PhilipPhilip Levine |
Simple Truth The Simple Truth |
Winner |
|
Ginsberg, AllenAllen Ginsberg |
Cosmopolitan Greetings: Poems 1986-1992 |
Finalist |
|
Koch, KennethKenneth Koch |
On the Great Atlantic Rainway: Selected Poems 1950-1988 and One Train |
Finalist |
|
1996 |
Graham, JorieJorie Graham |
Dream of the Unified Field The Dream of the Unified Field |
Winner |
|
Justice, DonaldDonald Justice |
New and Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Wright, CharlesCharles Wright |
Chickamauga |
Finalist |
|
1997 |
Mueller, LiselLisel Mueller |
Alive Together: New and Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Pinsky, RobertRobert Pinsky |
Figured Wheel The Figured Wheel |
Finalist |
|
Sheck, LaurieLaurie Sheck |
Willow Grove The Willow Grove |
Finalist |
|
1998 |
Wright, CharlesCharles Wright |
Black Zodiac |
Winner |
|
Bidart, FrankFrank Bidart |
Desire |
Finalist |
|
Williams, C.K.C.K. Williams |
Vigil The Vigil |
Finalist |
|
1999 |
Strand, MarkMark Strand |
Blizzard of One |
Winner |
|
Notley, AliceAlice Notley |
Mysteries of Small Houses |
Finalist |
|
Seidel, FrederickFrederick Seidel |
Going Fast |
Finalist |
|
2000s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 2000–2009
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Result |
Ref. |
2000 |
Williams, C. K.C. K. Williams |
Repair |
Winner |
|
Jones, RodneyRodney Jones |
Elegy for the Southern Drawl |
Finalist |
|
Rich, AdrienneAdrienne Rich |
Midnight Salvage: Poems 1995-1998 |
Finalist |
|
2001 |
Dunn, StephenStephen Dunn |
Different Hours |
Winner |
|
Lea, SydneySydney Lea |
Pursuit of a Wound |
Finalist |
|
Smith, BruceBruce Smith |
Other Lover The Other Lover |
Finalist |
|
2002 |
Dennis, CarlCarl Dennis |
Practical Gods |
Winner |
|
Glück, LouiseLouise Glück |
Seven Ages The Seven Ages |
Finalist |
|
Wright, FranzFranz Wright |
Beforelife The Beforelife |
Finalist |
|
2003 |
Muldoon, PaulPaul Muldoon |
Moy Sand and Gravel |
Winner |
|
Bidart, FrankFrank Bidart |
Music Like Dirt |
Finalist |
|
McClatchy, J. D.J. D. McClatchy |
Hazmat |
Finalist |
|
2004 |
Wright, FranzFranz Wright |
Walking to Martha's Vineyard |
Winner |
|
Cole, HenriHenri Cole |
Middle Earth |
Finalist |
|
McHugh, HeatherHeather McHugh |
Eyeshot |
Finalist |
|
2005 |
Kooser, TedTed Kooser |
Delights & Shadows |
Winner |
|
Matthews, WilliamWilliam Matthews |
Search Party: Collected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Pegeen Kelly, BrigitBrigit Pegeen Kelly |
Orchard The Orchard |
Finalist |
|
2006 |
Emerson, ClaudiaClaudia Emerson |
Late Wife |
Winner |
|
Alexander, ElizabethElizabeth Alexander |
American Sublime |
Finalist |
|
Young, DeanDean Young |
Elegy on Toy Piano |
Finalist |
|
2007 |
Trethewey, NatashaNatasha Trethewey |
Native Guard |
Winner |
|
Espada, MartínMartín Espada |
Republic of Poetry The Republic of Poetry |
Finalist |
|
Wojahn, DavidDavid Wojahn |
Interrogation Palace: New & Selected Poems 1982-2004 |
Finalist |
|
2008 |
Hass, RobertRobert Hass |
Time and Materials |
Winner |
|
Schultz, PhilipPhilip Schultz |
Failure |
Winner |
|
Bryant Voigt, EllenEllen Bryant Voigt |
Messenger: New and Selected Poems, 1976-2006 |
Finalist |
|
2009 |
Merwin, W. S.W. S. Merwin |
Shadow of Sirius The Shadow of Sirius |
Winner |
|
Bidart, FrankFrank Bidart |
Watching the Spring Festival |
Finalist |
|
Stone, RuthRuth Stone |
What Love Comes To: New & Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
2010s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 2010–2019
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Result |
Ref. |
2010 |
Armantrout, RaeRae Armantrout |
Versed |
Winner |
|
Estes, AngieAngie Estes |
Tryst |
Finalist |
|
Perillo, LuciaLucia Perillo |
Inseminating the Elephant |
Finalist |
|
2011 |
Ryan, KayKay Ryan |
Best of It: New and Selected Poems The Best of It: New and Selected Poems |
Winner |
|
Manning, MauriceMaurice Manning |
Common Man The Common Man |
Finalist |
|
Valentine, JeanJean Valentine |
Break the Glass |
Finalist |
|
2012 |
Smith, Tracy K.Tracy K. Smith |
Life on Mars |
Winner |
|
Gander, ForrestForrest Gander |
Core Samples from the World |
Finalist |
|
Padgett, RonRon Padgett |
How Long |
Finalist |
|
2013 |
Olds, SharonSharon Olds |
Stag's Leap |
Winner |
|
Gilbert, JackJack Gilbert |
Collected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Weigl, BruceBruce Weigl |
Abundance of Nothing The Abundance of Nothing |
Finalist |
|
2014 |
Seshadri, VijayVijay Seshadri |
3 Sections |
Winner |
|
Creech, MorriMorri Creech |
Sleep of Reason The Sleep of Reason |
Finalist |
|
Matejka, AdrianAdrian Matejka |
Big Smoke The Big Smoke |
Finalist |
|
2015 |
Pardlo, GregoryGregory Pardlo |
Digest |
Winner |
|
Shapiro, AlanAlan Shapiro |
Reel to Reel |
Finalist |
|
Sze, ArthurArthur Sze |
Compass Rose |
Finalist |
|
2016 |
Balakian, PeterPeter Balakian |
Ozone Journal |
Winner |
|
Seuss, DianeDiane Seuss |
Four-Legged Girl |
Finalist |
|
Willis, ElizabethElizabeth Willis |
Alive: New and Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
2017 |
Jess, TyehimbaTyehimba Jess |
Olio |
Winner |
|
McGrath, CampbellCampbell McGrath |
XX |
Finalist |
|
Rich, AdrienneAdrienne Rich |
Collected Poems: 1950-2012 |
Finalist |
|
2018 |
Bidart, FrankFrank Bidart |
Half-light: Collected Poems 1965–2016 |
Winner |
|
Shockley, EvieEvie Shockley |
semiautomatic, |
Finalist |
|
Smith, PatriciaPatricia Smith |
Incendiary Art |
Finalist |
|
2019 |
Gander, ForrestForrest Gander |
Be With |
Winner |
|
Charles, JosJos Charles |
feeld |
Finalist |
|
Stallings, A.E.A.E. Stallings |
Like |
Finalist |
|
2020s
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry winners, 2020–present
Year |
Poet |
Title |
Result |
Ref. |
2020 |
Brown, JerichoJericho Brown |
Tradition The Tradition |
Winner |
|
Laux, DorianneDorianne Laux |
Only as the Day Is Long: New and Selected Poems |
Finalist |
|
Ruefle, MaryMary Ruefle |
Dunce |
Finalist |
|
2021 |
Diaz, NatalieNatalie Diaz |
Postcolonial Love Poem |
Winner |
|
Berssenbrugge, Mei-meiMei-mei Berssenbrugge |
Treatise on Stars A Treatise on Stars |
Finalist |
|
Forché, CarolynCarolyn Forché |
In the Lateness of the World |
Finalist |
|
2022 |
Seuss, DianeDiane Seuss |
frank: sonnets |
Winner |
|
Alexander, WillWill Alexander |
Refractive Africa: Ballet of the Forgotten |
Finalist |
|
Vang, Mai DerMai Der Vang |
Yellow Rain |
Finalist |
|
2023 |
Phillips, CarlCarl Phillips |
Then the War: And Selected Poems, 2007–2020 |
Winner |
|
Hopler, JayJay Hopler |
Still Life |
Finalist |
|
okpik, dg nanoukdg nanouk okpik |
Blood Snow |
Finalist |
|
|
2024 |
Som, BrandonBrandon Som |
Tripas: Poems |
Winner |
|
Graham, JorieJorie Graham |
To 2040 |
Finalist |
|
Schiff, RobynRobyn Schiff |
Information Desk: An Epic |
Finalist |
|
Multiple wins and nominations
The following individuals received two or more Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry (The 1918 and 1919 Special Prizes are included):
Wins |
Poet |
Years |
4 |
Robert Frost |
1924, 1931, 1937, 1943 |
3 |
Edwin Arlington Robinson |
1922, 1925, 1928 |
2 |
Stephen Vincent Benét |
1929, 1944 |
Robert Lowell |
1947, 1974 |
Archibald MacLeish |
1933, 1953 |
William S. Merwin |
1971, 2009 |
Carl Sandburg |
1919, 1951 |
Robert Penn Warren |
1958, 1979 |
Richard Wilbur |
1957, 1989 |
The following individuals received two or more nominations:
Bolded years are years that the poet won
Nominations |
Poet |
Years |
5 |
Charles Wright |
1982, 1983, 1985, 1996, 1998 |
4 |
Frank Bidart |
1998, 2003, 2009, 2018 |
Robert Frost |
1924, 1931, 1937, 1943 |
Adrienne Rich |
1990, 1992, 2000, 2017 |
3 |
Edwin Arlington Robinson |
1922, 1925, 1928 |
Charles Simic |
1986, 1987, 1990 |
2 |
John Ashbery |
1976, 1993 |
Stephen Vincent Benét |
1929, 1944 |
Forrest Gander |
2012, 2019 |
Jack Gilbert |
1983, 2013 |
Louise Glück |
1993, 2002 |
Anthony Hecht |
1968, 1991 |
Richard Hugo |
1980, 1981 |
Donald Justice |
1980, 1996 |
Robert Lowell |
1947, 1974 |
Archibald MacLeish |
1933, 1953 |
James Merril |
1977, 1993 |
William S. Merwin |
1971, 2009 |
Carl Sandburg |
1919, 1951 |
Diane Seuss |
2016, 2022 |
Mark Strand |
1981, 1999 |
Dave Smith |
1980, 1982 |
Robert Penn Warren |
1958, 1979 |
Richard Wilbur |
1957, 1989 |
C.K. Williams |
1988, 1998 |
Franz Wright |
2002, 2004 |
Robert Frost won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry four times from 1924 to 1943. Edwin Arlington Robinson won three prizes during the 1920s and several people, all male, have won two.
Carl Sandburg won one of the special prizes for his poetry in 1919 and won the Poetry Pulitzer in 1951.
Only three women have had multiple nominations: Adrienne Rich with 4, and Louise Glück and Diane Seuss with 2 each.
See also
In Spanish: Premio Pulitzer de Poesía para niños